The Killing Jar Read Online Free PDF Page A

expected to hold his hand, clutch his arm, or participate in any other repulsive activity she’d seen from couples in other classes.
    She was free to walk beside him in silence.
    In two years, a geneticist would harvest her eggs and his sperm and isolate the ideal combination to implant into her uterus. Depending on their research success, they might be issued two or three child permits, the only light in her dim personal life. Otherwise, Aida and Sal were copilots, only interacting when required to do so.
    Walking beside her husband in the life that should have been a dream come true, Aida couldn’t help but feel something was missing. She was engaged in her work, she loved the hours spent in her lab, but something was wrong. Something had been wrong for a long time.
    She hoped the feeling was only her grief at losing Dr. Parr.
    The corridor steadily filled with more and more Scholars in black, each to attend the funeral of a man few of them had known. In fact, none had known Jackson Parr better than her.
    “Terrible thing, isn’t it?”
    Aida looked up at the source of the voice and found Dr. Calvin Hill, one of the newest Scholars at the LRF, just arrived on the last shuttle three months ago. In a black suit and dark-green tie that matched his eyes, he had one of the most cavalier outfits she’d seen yet. Aida was strangely thankful for the change of scenery.
    “Awful,” she admitted. Aida had genuinely liked Dr. Parr, had known him for years and studied under him at the Scholar Academy. And it would probably never sit right that she had been the last person to see him alive.
    “I’m truly sorry for your loss. Death is never easy, but a situation like this can only be that much harder. Will you let me know if you need anything?” Calvin’s hand on her shoulder was an unaccustomed touch, both comforting and strange.
    “Of course,” Aida replied too quickly, unsure of protocol.
    “I hope that you will,” he continued, a warm smile illuminating his light complexion and deep, green eyes. “And whenever you’re ready, there’s a few things in the lab that could use an expert opinion.” His hand moved to offer a light squeeze to her elbow before he disappeared in the crowd.
    “What was that about?” Sal inquired. His eyes never drifted from the slow stampede of black-robed scientists heading to the deepest depths of the hollowed moon, the largest gathering area and the only one that could hold the entire LRF staff.
    “I’m not sure, I guess he has some data to go over,” she replied, though Aida knew perfectly well no data would come in for another twenty-four hours. Good thing Sal would never know the difference.
    “How long will this take? I have some data to analyze myself.”
    “I imagine about as long as the others.” Seven Scholars had died in the two years since Aida and Sal had received their lunar assignment, though none had had such a personal impact on her.
    LRF Central was nearly full by the time they arrived, blending into the sea of black and finding a seat near the back. A hologram of Dr. Parr was projected on the edge of the stage, pacing back and forth with a tablet as he was prone to doing. Had it not been for the glint of holographic light, Aida might have thought it to be her dear mentor in the flesh.
    But no, Dr. Parr was far wearier than that vibrant phantom. She hadn’t realized how sallow his cheeks had become, how dark the circles under his eyes. The Jackson Parr that died the night before barely resembled himself.
    Something had been terribly wrong.
    “That him?” Sal asked with a head nod toward the hologram, though Aida barely had the voice to respond. Her husband and mentor had met several times, but like most Scholars, Sal cared little for personal relationships.
    It was something she had shared with Dr. Parr, an understanding of the big picture, that they were all connected. It was something she lost when he died suddenly with no apparent cause of death.
    The creepy